Student Immigration News

You may access the full page of information available here.

Please assume all classes are being taught unless you are told otherwise. As long as you continue to attend all contact and engagement points wherever possible, your visa status will not be affected by the industrial action. Your academic school will issue the necessary authorised absences for contact points affected by the action.

While other staff may offer advice about your status, it is important that you only take advice on your Tier 4 student visa status from qualified members of University or Kent Union staff:

• Student Immigration Compliance Team – visacompliance@kent.ac.uk
• Kent Union – advice@kent.ac.uk
• GK Unions at Medway – advice@gkunions.co.uk

We appreciate this may be a difficult time for some of our international students. Please be assured we are here to help you. Please refer to the Advice and Support section if you require further guidance.

Unfortunately we’ve been made aware of another scam targeting Chinese students. This time, the person on the phone is claiming to be the Assembly of China and accuses the student of money laundering crimes.

Rather than asking for payment they just ask for personal details of bank accounts. It appears to be a very sophisticated scam; the student is given a case ID number and given a website to access. When they enter the case ID into the site they’ll be shown an authentic-looking (fake) case that’s supposedly from the highest court in China alongside their own photograph from National ID card. Funds are then taken from their bank account.

The case we’ve heard about resulted in a student losing £7,000, but the Chinese Embassy has said most sums are much larger.

Please be reminded and staff should remind students to be careful and vigilant with calls from unknown numbers. In this case the initial phonecall is from a UK number, but they’re asked to call a Chinese number.

The link on the Police Registration bookmark you received at registration has been updated to https://beta.kent.police.uk/advice/advice-and-information/ov/registering-overseas-visitor/ 

Please use this link to register and book your appointment.

Thank you and apologies for the inconvenience.

For any queries about Arrivals procedures please visit our Arrivals 2019 page.

eGates: Entering the UK – Advice to non-visa nationals. Travellers with biometric passports from the following countries are be able to enter the UK using eGates:

Australia
Canada
Japan
New Zealand
Singapore
South Korea
USA

Nationals from these countries entering the UK either as a visitor or as a Student, are no longer required to seek out a Border Force Officer on arrival.

Visitors and Students (including those with Tier 4 permission) who use the eGates will not receive a stamp in their passport. A visitor is someone who is entering the UK primarily as a tourist but also now includes those coming to the UK to study for less than 6 months.

If you are travelling on a Student visa from one of the countries above, you can use the eGates but you must retain evidence of your boarding pass as the University will request to see a copy of this when registering you as a student.

Further information can be found on the following websites:

UK Council for International Student Affairs (UKCISA)

Home Office – Border Force

Whilst we are still unclear of the UK’s position regarding its exit from the EU, we endeavour to continue to provide support and guidance to our students. You can find updates on this page which will continue to be updated with the latest information as more details become available: https://www.kent.ac.uk/european/advice/index.html

The UK Council for International Student Affairs (UKCISA) is the UK’s national advisory body supporting international students and those who work with them. They provide advice, guidance and information about all aspects of the international student experience, from immigration and fees to mental health, culture shock and orientation.

The latest advice and guidance represents UKCISA’s best current interpretation and understanding of government announcements as they relate to visa regulations, fee status and student support.

We hope that this general guidance for those currently in the UK or considering studying in the UK will be helpful.